


Trust me//

by MagicLove



Category: Dolan Twins - Fandom, ethan dolan - Fandom, grayson dolan - Fandom, youtube - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Attempted Murder, Cancer, Developing Relationship, F/M, Gen, Love, Mentions of Cancer, Murder, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Rape/Non-con Elements, Sex, Suicide Attempt, Trauma, Tutoring
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-18
Updated: 2019-09-02
Packaged: 2020-07-07 21:31:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 11,176
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19858336
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MagicLove/pseuds/MagicLove
Summary: "I need you to trust me, that I won't hurt you like everyone else."Ethan is an asshole, the most popular kid, and for lack of a better term he is also failing school. Dya, on the other hand; was never good at making friends. She was also never good at wanting to fit in, especially now that she's turtoring Ethan after school. In a town where everything needed to be conventional, it seemed like no one was being authentic. Since she started at this new school, she had been the topic of conversation. The conversation started by none other than Ethan Dolan. Could she lure Ethan to being more himself? Or was she going to loose him to the society that wanted him by his head.





	1. Chapter 1

It was one of those things that you didn't expect to happen. You live your life day by day, never thinking that anything bad can happen to you. Sometimes you think it's boring, uneventful even. Oh, what I wouldn't do for it to be boring right now. How I would appreciate my life to just stand still for one minute so that I was able to formulate my thoughts or even get a single second to breathe. I guess that's just how life worked... or at least how mine did.

One moment you're on top of the world, the next... everything is over. Life as you knew it was complete changed forever. Still in shock, I walked away from the coffin as they lowered her into the ground.

I don't really know who my mother was, I grew up most of my life not knowing that she was even still alive. She left me when I was too young to even know I had a mom. I grew up with my father, under the impression that she was dead. Now she actually was. I will give life this though, it had one sick sense of humor. I didn't miss her before because I never knew what I was missing out on. Now that do know what I'll be missing, it really was just a sick joke that I'm sure life really busted wanted to play with me.

I looked up at the skies, the overcast making me feel more upset that I had to leave my home. Sure I was not going to miss this humidity, but I don't know anyone in New Jersey. All of my friends lived in Florida... I guess I did have one up there, but she lived all the way in Paterson, I wasn't going to be able to see her whenever I wanted anyway, so it really was like I had no friends up there. My family was in Wood-ridge, a really small part of New Jersey that no one knew existed. Maybe because most people drive through it all the time, you sneeze and it's gone. I didn't really want to live with them, but after all the trouble I got into with my mother down in Florida. I really had no choice.

"Dya!" My aunt called out, signaling that it was time to get going. We had a plane to catch, and we still needed to get all eight of us through security and onto the plane. I looked one more time at the grave. Wanting to crawl into the coffin with her and let myself be buried alive. That couldn't be more painful than what I was feeling in this exact moment. I wanted to stop existing, but at the same time I did not want to die.

My entire life was changing right here, right now and it felt like no one even gave a shit. My mother just died and my father is dying as we speak. I couldn't even stay down here to help him, what about my siblings? Where are they going to think I went? They are going to think I abandoned them. I didn't want to go up north with my aunt. I really didn't. I wanted to keep my life exactly how it is.

I was hoping I didn't have to move during my last year of high school. I was already comfortable in my school. That took three years to accomplish! There was no way in hell that I wasn't going to be the biggest joke in all of Wood-ridge high school, home of the Blue Devils. My aunt already was talking to me about joining the cheer team because my cousin plays on their varsity football team, but that was never going to happen. I was probably going to be the only girl on that team that didn't wear a size two. Probably because I was also the only girl on that team that was Puerto Rican, I mean that how it was at my old school. So maybe I was wrong.

I knew what sport I wanted to play, I had played it my last three years in Florida. I wanted to join the Lacrosse team, and I would be damned if they didn't let me. I've spent the past three years on that team, learning every single move I could legally, and illegally do on that field.

"Tia, I really appreciate you taking me in and all. I just don't want to try out for the cheer team. I want to finish playing lacrosse. It's the one sport I know I can dominate in." I said with a smile. Trying to make it seem like I wasn't being a completely ungrateful ass.

"I'm sorry, we don't have a lacrosse team, let alone a girls lacrosse team." She said, not skipping a single beat. I stood back, how could a school in New Jersey not have a lacrosse team?

"Okay, then what school does?" I was silently freaking out, there was no way in hell I couldn't go my senior year without it. It was the only thing in my life I was good at.

"I wouldn't know, it's not like you could just go to whatever school you wanted anyway." She laughed, almost evilly. She was right, I couldn't. I sighed and was about to accept defeat when I remembered something.

"Hold on Tia Ivy, " I stopped talking, trying to come up with the right words to say. I knew I had one way out of it, If I got lucky... she might let me go to a different school.

"I was an IB student at my last high school. That means I can just go to an IB school up here, one with a girls lacrosse team!" I said with excitement. I might not have to give up my entire life after all.

I could feel the her glare without even looking up at her. I guess that she forgot I had my father's stubbornness coursing through my veins. I smiled, knowing that she had lost this battle.

"Find one and we'll talk." She said walking away. I stood still, not really sure if I had heard her correctly. Since she worked for the New Jersey school board, all of her kids got to go to whatever school they wanted. I knew the same would have been for me so the only thing I had going for me is the IB schools that I am allowed to attend.

"Oh. I'll find one alright." Determination peaking through. Even if it was literally the worst school ever, I was going to get on that field.

I had to give up literally everything else in my life. I wasn't even sorry if she found my persistence obnoxious, but I refuse to give up the last thing that made me who I was. Just because she could forget my father and the life they lived in New York, doesn't mean I will.


	2. chapter 2

"West Morris high school? Really?" My aunt asked, confused as to why I picked a school with a C rating. It wasn't the best school out there, but I would be able to play my sport and finish up my last year of high school.

"Yes, I want to go to West Morris." I crossed my arms as my aunt gave me a disgusted look, almost saying that my choice was shit.

"Look, I know that isn't the fanciest school out there, but it's a school with sport I love more than anything else. It's the only thing I'm good at. I would really do anything to just be able to play." I pleaded. She always made her kids play at least one sport so that we wouldn't be stuck inside all day.

My cousins all had a sport they would die for. Sam had his football, Stacy had her soccer, and Xenon had baseball. I had lacrosse.

My aunt looked back over at me and shook her head.

"Fine, you can go. There's some ground rules though." I smiled widely and nodded my head in agreement.

"You need to finish all of your homework every night. Be home right after practice. A's and B's only, I see a C and you're coming right off the team." She crossed her arms and waited for me to fight back. My aunt always had the most invasive, annoying rules. I swear there was one summer when I was 14, I wasn't even allowed to eat with a fork.

Maybe because she figured I might have ended up stabbing someone or something. I would never, but being here during the summers really almost got me to that point. The important thing is that I didn't stab anyone with a fork, and I am now allowed to eat with a fork.

"Yes, fine. I agree to everything." I said happily. I ran up to my aunt and wrapped my arms around her, bringing her into a hug. She hugged me back and grabbed my should before I was able to run to my room.

"Dya, please. I know I can't tell you no boys, but please no boys. They'll distract you." She said sternly. I looked up at her and nodded shyly. I really doubted that I had anything to worry about. I didn't really date back in my old high school. I have this thing about brains, you needed to have one before I could be interested in you. Most people in my high school lacked that certain feature.

Ivy let go of my arm and dismissed me to go to my room. It wasn't that I hated my aunt or anything, she was always really nice to me, and tried her hardest to make a good life for her and her children. There was just a point in her life I think she forgot who she was.

She became one of those stay at home moms and life only revolved around her kids. I personally have no idea how she was able to do it. I would never. Then again I don't have any children. Just last year she finally had enough and started working again. Thank god, because she smothered everyone... all the time.

I started to walk up to my room when my cousin Sam stopped me in the hallway. He wrapped his arms around me, engulfing me in a hug. Making it kinda hard to breath.

"Hello my princess," he said with a smirk, his lips coming down to press to the tip of my nose. I stopped and stared at him as he pulled his arms away from me.

"Nice to have you back." He continued to walk around me, leaving me extremely grossed out. I really didn't tell anyone in the family about the way Sam treated me. He was the star kid. He was the son, grandson, and brother that everyone wanted.

Since they all loved him, there was not going to be any way in hell that my family would even believe that Sam sexually assaulted me when I was seven years old, and they wouldn't believe they way he still acts now towards me. They would somehow say it was my fault.

It took me years of development and trips to the therapist the school made me talk to in middle school for me to finally learn it was not my fault. I did nothing wrong, try telling me that a few years ago when it first happened.

It was hard being the loser's daughter. My dad was the black sheep. He didn't graduate high school, he got involved in gangs and crime. He didn't have the best friends, and my entire family was always disappointed in him. Not to mention they all hated my mother, I mean how could anyone not hate someone who abandoned their child at two months.

Don't get me wrong, I love my family because, well... They are my family. So yes. I do love them, but since my father was the family idiot, I was supposed to be as well. When that didn't happen, my aunt Ivy got mad. She was supposed to have the star child because she herself was the star child. Not my loser of a father. So inherently, I became black sheep part 2.

A large difference between Sam and I, is that Sam is a lot more of a showoff than I am. He flaunts his average grades and even more average football playing. My aunt goes to fancy dinner parties and drinks top shelf wine.

I stay silent about the 4.7 weighted GPA, and record breaking plays during all of my games. Also don't ever bring up the fact that I'm only Sixteen and a senior in high school. While my father lived in the ghetto, hating his life on chemo, drinking gas station beer to take the pain away from said chemo.

This is why I said life wasn't fair. I'm not saying I deserved a better life than Sam. I just don't think he should have that great of a life as a predator. Maybe that's where I'm messed up, but I can't be more messed up than him.

I continued to walk past him, wanting to get everything ready for my first day of class.

While I knew I had to be on my best behavior for sake of my education, I was also doing it for my father. Holding my head up high to let him know I'm going to make him proud and wear our black sheep layer with pride.


	3. chapter 3

I walked through the halls of West Morris high school, my first day was right in front of me. I wasn't really sure where anything was, but that was kinda the whole point of getting here twenty minutes before class got started to try to learn the building numbers. I walked around for a while before I saw two boys pull up in the student parking lot, getting a spot in the first row, right by the football field. It was still pretty dark out, considering we were starting to get a great deal colder.

The boys got out and began to argue with each other.

"Come on Grayson, we are here way too early. Look how dark it is out here." The shorter of the two yelled. I slowed down my walking, being nosy and kinda wanting to know what this Grayson person's response was.

"Hey, it's not my fault that I want to be the responsible twin. Mrs. Dear said if you were late any more this year, you might not graduate. I really don't want my brother to miss graduation." I snickered slightly, anyone willing to be late every single day instead of coming to class kinda had whatever punishment they had coming their way.

I Was able to get a pretty good look at the boys as I walked by the car they pulled in with. When they saw me, they quickly stopped their conversation and looked at me, watching as I walked by. They seemed like they were pretty popular just by the way they looked.

They both were very good looking, swooped brown hair and tall frames that were more than averagely built. I continued to walk past them to continue my self tour of the campus.

After getting pretty familiar, I decided to go to the cafeteria and wait for class to start while grabbing a pretty decent school breakfast. I don't know if anyone else noticed, but the breakfasts were always better than the lunches they served.

I went out to the tables and sat at one that was empty. I wasn't really a morning person, I didn't want to mix it with any sort of human interaction whatsoever.

I sat and watched as the two boys I had seen earlier walked in and went straight to a table that was filled with the jock kids. I had a feeling that they were popular. The boys took their beanies off and I sat there, looking closely I realized that they were twins. Two extremely attractive boys that look exactly the same? They must have girls going crazy about them.

I looked back down and noticed a girl sitting down at my table.

"Hey, I'm Emily. I noticed that you don't have any friends. Would you mind if I sat with ya?" She said overly cheerful, the curls around her face bouncing as she did. I could tell that she was a bit odd, also probably a huge nerd... I liked her.

"Yeah sure, just to let you know. I'm pretty boring." I said with a smirk. She smiled and nodded, looking back over to there the jocks were sitting.   
"I saw you staring at the Dolan Twins earlier." She said with a slight giggle. She opened up her milk carton and began to sip out of it. I looked up at her With confusion.   
"Who?" I asked, she placed the carton down and looked back over at me.

"The two boys you were watching when they walked in. Those are the Dolan Twins. They are the star players of the boy's lacrosse team. They carry the team so they are pretty important here." Emily looked back over at the boys. I didn't really care about popularity, I'm just here to get my education, play lacrosse and get the hell out.

I stood up when the first bell rang, grabbing my book bag and slinging it over my shoulder, heading over to my first class of the day, AP literature. Emily and I said out goodbyes and headed in separate directions. I walked outside and through the covered walk way to get to building 12, otherwise known at the testing hall.

I walked into the classroom and looked around for an empty seat. I picked one all the way in the back, next to the corner. The window was next to me, luckily there was a pretty view of a lake for me to stare at. The teacher started off with putting a painting up on the projector for the class to analyze. A few minutes and the door opened and the girls in the class started giggling. Looking up, I noticed the pretty familiar faces. The Dolans.

They both walked to the back row where I was in and sat down next to me, the taller one closer to me and the short one with the blue stripe in his hair was on the other side of his brother. I knew their last name, I just wish I knew what their first names were.

"Nice for you to join us, Ethan and Grayson." Ms. Jefferson called out. Her wild, wavy salt and pepper hair being pushed behind her ear when she addressed the two boys.

"Sorry Ms. Jefferson, we forgot our books in the car." The taller, and tanner one spoke, trying to defend why they were late.

"Just don't be late again, don't want to have to write you and your brother up, Grayson." Okay, cool. Haven't even been in class a full hour and I already knew their names. I rolled up eyes and looked back at the screen, that was until Grayson tapped my arm and leaned in to whisper to me.

"So, what are we doing?" He asked, unsure of what was going on.

"If you were here on time, you would know." I said with a glare.

"Woah, new girl is sassy." He said with slight shock, I kept my glare on him until he laughed nervously.

"Please, just fill us in." I sighed,

"Okay, well there's a painting on the board and we are just analyzing it. We have to see if we could find the meaning of it." I explained. I looked back at the painting. It was very simple. All the characters' backs were facing us, looking away at something else. There was a body upside down in a lack, opposite of where everyone was looking. The colors were muted, the only thing that was bright were a pair of white wings off in the distance. I couldn't really understand what the concept here was. I wasn't a philosophical kind of girl, I was more of a literal girl. I guess that's why I was always better with coding and building computers. That was literal.

I could hear the other twin, Ethan, yawn. As if he was bored out of his mind and didn't want anything to do with what was going on. Grayson looked over at his brother and shook his head.

"Come on, participate." Grayson tried to pull his brother along, it didn't seem like Ethan was going to take it.

"Yes, come on Mr. Dolan. Participate." Ms. Jefferson came up to him with her arms crossed.

"What do you think the painting means?" Ethan looked over at his brother before looking at the teacher and then the painting. He bit his lip and squinted his eyes.

"Uh I don't know, looks like people are just ignoring that person drowning." He said with a shrug. Ms. Jefferson shook her head and looked at me.

"How about you, Ms. Ortiz?" She looked hopeful, almost as if I was her last hope to get the meaning of this photo out.

"So when looking at this photo, it seems as if the person who fell was Icarus. I mean if it is, it would explain the white wings that look a bit disheveled, as well as the person drowning. He flew too close to the sun and he fell. He fell to earth and now he has to face the facts that he isn't as important as he though he was because no one even notices he fell out of the sky and is drowning." I said, trying to be as simplistic as possible, just incase I was wrong.

"Good job, Dya? Right?" She asked, I nodded and smiled softly. I guess I wasn't so bad at this analysis thing.

"You see Ethan, you should be more like Dya." Ms. Jefferson smiled and continued to walk to the front of the class while Ethan glared at me.

"Good job making me look bad." He said bitterly.

"Oh no sweetheart, you did that all yourself." I said with a smile. I knew I made him even angrier when I smiled at him, but I didn't care. It wasn't my fault that Ethan was being lazy and got called out for it. I guess Ethan was just so privileged he gets to blame everyone else but himself for the consequences of his actions.

Daddy always told me, you have freedom of choice, but not freedom of consequence. A lesson that Ethan Dolan was about to learn.


	4. Chapter 4

I looked around the lunch room, walking around waiting to find a table to sit at. I decided to go outside and saw Emily sitting at a table with a few other girls. She stood up and waved me over.

"Dya!" She yelled out. I looked up and walked over to the table she was at. There were about four other girls. They all looked at me with smiles.

"Hey, I'm Sally." Said a girl with really dirty blonde highlights on a brown long bob. Her smile consisted of extremely white, straight teeth. Her green eyes shining in the light.

"I'm Syren." Said a tanned Philippino with straight black hair. Her skin a glowing caramel color. I smiled and nodded in their direction. The other two girls were in the middle of chewing their food. When the first one finished, she sat up.

"I'm Lily." Said the red headed girl with freckles all over her body. Her blue eyes popping out out behind the orange tint of her eyelashes.

"And my name is Aubrey." Said the other blonde girl, she was more a bit chubby that the rest, but so was I. She smiled up at me and I noticed I had her in me first period class. I sat down at the table with the other girls and looked around the table.

"Hey guys, it's nice to meet you all. My name is Dyana, call me Dya." I said looking up at Emily who was going back to eating her cardboard pizza with plastic cheese. I started to eat my peanut butter and jelly sandwich which was the only vegetarian option at this school. I heard deep laughter being me and I turned around, seeing the Dolan twins with their friends. I rolled my eyes at them and looked back over to the food on my plate.

"Hey, there's the nerd from first period." I heard behind me, I turned to look behind me and sighed.

"Hello there, Ethan." I said with a smirk. Ethan looked between Grayson and me. Grayson shook his head, you could easily tell he was tired of his brother's shit. Ethan paused with his mouth slightly open.

"Well I guess I don't really have anything to really say." Ethan shoved his hands in his pocket and his friends laughed at Ethan's stupidity. I turned back around and also laughed with them, I had a feeling that Ethan wasn't a complete dick and was going to try to bully me, but he was going to pretend to hate me and pick on me whenever he had a chance. The bell rang and signaled that it was the end of lunch. I stood up and Brought my Styrofoam tray to the trash can.

"Hey, Dya." I heard as Ethan and his crew came up to me. I stopped in my tracks and looked at them.

"Did you need something, Dolan?" I crossed my arms over my chest and looked over at all of them. I noticed everyone in the group of guys looked the same. All blonde hair with blue eyes. I shook my head and looked back at Ethan.

"I don't know who you think you are, but you're not even that hot to be trying to make me look like a complete dumbass. You're just some nerd that popped out of nowhere and no one even wants around." He said with a sassy tone, trying to get the point of some fear across. I arched my brow and squinted my eyes as if I was in pain.

"You realize that you just called me hot, right?" I asked with my finger in the air, figuratively pointing out the error in what he just said. Ethan paused and uncrossed his arms for a second. He looked over at this friends who were also very quiet, and not quite sure what to say.

"You wish I did." He said with a jackass of a laugh.

"No, I know you did. You said I wasn't 'that' hot, implying you think I am to a certain extent." I explained. I had no idea that at some point in my life I was going to need to explain the insult that someone had trying to get me with.

When I could see the black smoke come from Ethan's ears and could smell bacon burning as the gears in his head were grinding, I knew I wasn't going to get much of a reply to what I had just said.

I sighed dramatically and turned back around to walk inside the building, not wanting to be late to APCS, other wise known as AP computer science.

I was for sure a nerd, but I wasn't going to let Ethan Dolan have that over my head. It was hard enough to believe he even made it to his senior year of high school with his level of comprehension.

I started walking to class when Lily stopped me, all in a panic like state.

"We're you just talking to Ethan Dolan?" She asked with excitement. I couldn't tell why it was such a big deal what I was talking to someone that could barely write their name.

"Yeah? Why?" I asked even more confused that I already was.

"He's friends with Cole Anderson. I've had a crush on him since fifth grade." She said with the biggest smile on her face. I chuckled softly and looked at her.

"Then why don't you talk to him?" I suggested.

"Okay, Dyan. I have no idea where you're from, but up here we never make the first move on a guy." She said with complete seriousness.

"Well I know I'm from the 21st century. Come on, that such an outdated idea." I laughed. "What is this? The 1950's? Are we incapable of taking care of ourselves? Boys are dumb Lily, In both Florida and New Jersey." I said with a bit a sass, trying to get my point across that there was nothing wrong about making the first move as a female.

"That's just not how the world works here, Dya." She said while walking off.

If this town really was that old fashioned, I was going to have a bit of a problem fitting in. I was always raised to do things for myself, never to rely on anyone. I guess most girls aren't taught that lesson, but this town was about to be shook to its core.


	5. Chapter 5

For the next few weeks, the teasing and "Flirting" from Ethan got worse. I didn't know if he actually hated me and wanted me dead, or if had some sort of backwards crush on me. The only good news that I really had was that the Lacrosse season had finally came around and that meant that I was finally gonna show the true skill I had. Sure I was the winner of the coding competition a few days ago at a local university, but that only made the teasing from Ethan and his jock friends calling me a nerd.

My home life wasn't getting much better either. It seemed like no matter what I did, Sam always ended up too close for comfort. Sneaking into my bed at night, and kissing various places of my face besides my lips. Everyone thought it was cousinly love, but it wasn't. It was torturous. I couldn't wait to get away from him and come to school this morning.

I waited eagerly all day for the last period bell to ring, I jumped up and grabbed my book bag, making my way to my calculus teacher and knocked on the door. Moments later Mr. Patrick was opening the door and letting me step in.

"Hey Dya, ready for lacrosse tryouts?" He asked, the corners of his mouth poked up into a smile.

"Yeah! I am really excited for this. I really hope I can make it onto the varsity team. Lacrosse is more extreme here than Florida." I rambled, walking over to my lacrosse stick and gym bag.

"See ya later, Mr. Patrick." I waved goodbye to my favorite teacher and made my way over to the girl locker room. Banging on the door for someone to open up the door that could be opened from the inside unless you had a key. The door opened and I walked inside, quickly noticing I was the only hispanic girl trying out. There were some Jamaican and Haitian girls there, which I always loved the accents from both countries. I walked to a locker and began getting undressed and in my athletic gear. I could hear whispers from around me.

"Did you hear the boys lacrosse tryouts are right after ours, that means all the boys will be there watching us." I perked up at that sentence and was immediately discussed. How I was not looking forward to being stared at by stupid boys.

I grabbed the stick out of its bag and placed the bag in the locker with the rest of my stuff. My mouth guard wrapped around the sports bra strap, and my goggles already on my head. I walked out with the rest of the girls. Running up to Emily who also wanted to try out, she was happy just getting JV since she had never played before.

"Hey, beautiful." She greeted to me and I winked. Her and I have gotten pretty close over the past few weeks. I was right about one thing with her first impression. She totally is a nerd, she is someone that challenges me.

"You ready to dominate the field?" She asked me , stretching out on the field. I joined her.

"I don't know what you mean about dominating the field, but I am ready to try out." I laughed at the end, shaking my head at her.

"Nerdy girl is trying out for a sport?" Alec, one of Ethan's friends looked over at me and then laughed. Ethan followed behind and shook his head.

"Shouldn't you be at home trying to figure out why E equals MC squared?"

"No because Einstein figured out that the energy content of a massive body is equal to that object's mass times the speed of light squared, so I don't have to." I rolled my eyes at him and continued to stretch. If he was going to call me Nerdy girl, might as well have fun with it.

Grayson walked up with the rest of the boys and looked over at me.

"Oh Hey, Dya!" He waived at me and I waved back. Grayson was so much cooler than his brother, we had the same Simulated Computer Manufacturing class and always needed my help for the code. I was literally the easiest thing for anyone to understand, so it wasn't so bad helping Grayson out.

Ethan glared at Grayson as he continued to try to make small talk with me. I stood up and looked at Grayson.

"How's the homework coming?" I asked, crossing my arms over my chest. I could see Ethan and his friends looking confused at the fact Grayson and I were having a normal conversation.

"Great, I really appreciate the help. Glad to see you're actually trying out. I think you'll do great." I smiled and looked down at the ground.

"Thanks, man. I really appreciate it." I could see most of the girls glaring and staring at me, as if I wasn't allowed to converse with Grayson Dolan. I really didn't know what was with these guys that made the girls here act freaking insane. I excused myself from the conversation and walked back over to Emily, picking up my stick and heading out to start picking up ground balls. With being left handed, I got a lot of practice with ground balls so I was basically a pro. I could watch Ethan's eyes on me the entire time. When I looked over at the brothers it seemed that Ethan was fighting with Grayson about something. I shook my head and continued out with the rest of the try out. Once we were completely done the coaches thanked us for coming to try out and said that the results from the try outs will be on their doors in the morning. I looked over at Emily, showing pure excitement and hope on my face. I started to walk away before I heard a coach yell.

"Dyana Ortiz-Diaz" I stopped in my track and looked back at the coach who yelled my name. She held me back as the rest of the girls went back into the changing room.

"Yes, Coach Brown?" I pulled the goggles up off my face, feeling relief around my eyes. I didn't really notice that they were too tight, but Ethan and his friends did.

"Welcome to the team." She whispered with a smile before continuing. "You did so awesome, you're on the team. Varsity. My team." I could feel the happiness bursting out of me.

"Thank you!" I smiled and clasped my hand together, coming together around the lacrosse stick. The coach slapped her hand on my shoulder in a congratulatory manner.

I looked over at Grayson, and caught his eyes. I gave him a thumbs up and started to walk away from the field back into the dressing room. I grabbed my stuff and started to make my way out.

All I had to do now was keep my grades up.


	6. Chapter 6

Waking up in the morning was always a fun time. I really hated how Sam would always be right by the bathroom door when I was stepping out. Almost as if he had built some sort of systematic way of knowing when I would be waking up, which changed day by day, and how long I was going to be taking a shower for. Which, incase you missed it. Is creepy.

I walked out of the bathroom and sure enough. Sam was standing there in a towel wrapped around his waist.

"Wanna drop towels?" He said, like every other morning as I walked by him. I didn't answer, I never did. I never wanting to give him that satisfaction.

There was no way in hell I was going to let my home life be worse than my school life because then school would end up being my getaway, which was sad on so many levels.

I walked back into my room and locked the door. Quickly getting dressed in some leggings and then jeans pulled on top, putting on a long sleeve and then a shirt on top. Making sure to have enough laying when the winter came around.

The only good thing about the winter was the chance of cancelled class. In Florida, winter came with two weeks of 50 degrees and maybe a cold from the temperature changing so much.

I brushed my dark purple hair in a bun. Something that came about because some drugstore hair dye. Pulling a beanie on top of it.

I put on my all black chuck Taylor converse and ran out of the house, grabbing my coat on the way out. I pulled my car keys from my book bag and jumped in my car. The first thing that I have to do before I can even begin the drive it some music. I quickly placed my favorite black veil brides music on the radio before feeling ready for the trip.

I pulled out of the driveway and started my about hour drive to school. I never really thought I would be driving my car that I bought myself when I first got my license would be my life saver, if it wasn't for this bright orange pumpkin, I would not be able to go to West Morris.

The hour drive consisted of me stopping for Starbucks, lots of song singing, and still some how making it to class early.

I started to make my way to first period and noticed that the classroom door way already opened. There must have been another student already there. I waled up closer to the door and stopped when I heard Ms. Jefferson speaking.

"I am not joking, Ethan. If you don't get a six on your next paper, you might not be able to play lacrosse this season. Your GPA would be too low." She said, not even trying to be offensive. That was one thing about Ms. Jefferson, she will really try to help you as much as she possibly could.

"How am I supposed to get a six? You said almost no one gets six's." He said with slight anger.

"Well, there is one student that has gotten straight sixes all semester." I paused, oh no. No. No. No.

"Dya?" He asked, as if it was the most obvious thing in the entire world. I really didn't want to have to tutor Ethan on emotion. If he's a psychopath, that was him. That was all on him.

"Yes, and she actually got a seven on the last essay. I don't know what caused this feud between the two of you, but you should put it aside. She's a lacrosse player too. This could work out perfectly because you guys basically have the same schedule." I didn't want to walk in right now, I might have not had to if Grayson didn't walk around the corner and outed me.

"Hey Dya." He greeted walking by me. I winced and walked into the classroom with him.

"Dya, perfect. Just the person that I wanted to speak to." She paused and pulled me closer to where her and Ethan were.

"Would you interested in tutoring Ethan in analyzing text and essay writing for some extra credit?" She asked in a hopeful tone. I knew she was desperate because she absolutely refused to ever give out extra credit.

I looked at her and then back at Ethan, not really sure what my answer should be. One one hand, I do want Ethan to play this season. However, he was the one who didn't take school seriously so this is his punishment for doing so. I crossed my arms and sighed.

"Yeah sure. I wouldn't mind tutoring Ethan." I said with a soft, fake smile. I knew Ethan knew it was fake because he even scoffed. I would never want to talk to this idiot in my entire life.

"Thank you so much. I suggest trading phone numbers to be able to communicate outside of my class." She said with a smile, not really moving from where she was. I hesitantly pulled out my phone and gave it to Ethan to put his number in. Ethan did the same and we switched phones back.

"Perfect! Thank you, Dya." She dismissed us to go to our seat and Ethan glared at me, possibly upset that I now had to tutor him. If only he knew what I would prefer to to then spend time with him.

The tension between us stayed thick through out class. I honestly could not wait to see where this was going to go.


	7. chapter 7

"So you have to tutor Ethan?" Emily looked over at me as I shoved a good piece of my fake chicken breast in my mouth. I was finally able to meal prep and be able to bring my own vegetarian options to school.

"Yep." I swallowed my food and looked over the at the rest of the cafeteria. We sat at the furthest table, on the other side of the outside patio. It was weird that we were the next adults in line, and yet here we were, trapped in a children jail.

A jail with the babies that just got out of middle school, and the kids who were already driving, and having jobs. That was just a large gap, but here it was. Right in front of us is the transition into adulthood from childhood.

I looked over at the jocks table and noticed that Ethan really wasn't being totally out there like I had always seen him doo usually. I wondered what had him so down.

"You're kinda obsessed with him, aren't you?" She asked, catching me off guard. I didn't really know if I heard her correctly.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"Did you not hear me?" She asked, taking a bite of the apple that came with her lunch. I shook my head in dissatisfaction. I did hear her, but I sure as hell did not agree with her. I=

"Dya, he's all you talk about and the only person you stare at." She rolled her eyes and looked from the jocks table to me. I didn't really even see It that way. I guess I disliked him so much that the obsession was coming from hate.

"I mean, what else is there to talk about Emily? I've told you all about my family and my life, and why I'm here. What else do you want to talk about?" I questioned.

"I don't know, I guess how's your father doing?" I paused at the question and closed my eyes for a second. My father was a real sore spot for me. Since I was a child, it has always been me and my father. I am a total Daddy's girl and seeing him in so much pain was killing me.

"He's alright, still sick and feeling like shit." I said simply, I didn't usually let people in like that when it came to my person life. I usually let my home life stay my home life, and my school life stay my school life. 

Emily nodded, knowing that I probably didn't really want to talk about it so much. We sat in silence for a few moments before she chirped back up.

"So when do you start tutoring Ethan?" She asked, looking back over at me. I rolled my eyes at her and sighed. She was just getting on me about being obsessed with Ethan, and now she's asking me about him? What a brat.

"I'm supposed to start tomorrow after school in the library." I finished up my food and threw out what ever was trash. I stayed standing up and looked around the football field that was behind us.

I seriously hated that the football field was in the middle and that classes surrounded the football field. It basically told us that football was the most important thing to this school.

"Oooh, well... have fun with Dolan." She said with a wink. I shook my head and looked back over to her.

"I don't like boys my age."

"Right, you only like Mr. Patrick." She giggled, spilling my secret out. I looked around, seeing who could have possibly hear it before looking back over to her.

"Say it louder why don't ya." I said a bit annoyed.

"Oh calm down, everyone knows he liked you too. Everyone ships the two of you together." She said with a soft giggle. I could feel the heat rush to my cheeks, feeling a good amount of heat on them,

"Shut up." I collected my things as the bell ran signaling the end of lunch.

"You know it's true, Dya." She claimed one last time before we both went in different directions to out next class.

I knew people assumed Mr. Patrick and I were doing something, but it wasn't something that I was proud of. I did think he was cute, but that was a girl having a crush on her teacher, which is a normal thing. Him potentially liking me was slightly bothersome for me, because that was not normal and illegal.

I forced it off of my mind before getting to my next class. I'm Ms. Withers star student after winning that coding competition, I needed to keep my head up and moving forward.


	8. Chapter 8

I sat on the table in Mr. Patricks room, watching him looking through the graded papers I did for him. He looked back over at me and smiled while his blue eyes shimmered in the light.

He was very attractive, at lease to me. I couldn't help but stare at the way his biceps were constricted in the stripped shirt he was wearing.

"I really appreciate your help, Dya, you really are a sweet girl. Aren't you also tutoring Ethan Dolan today?" He asked, I looked at him confused as to how he knew that. It wasn't something that I was personally shouting from the damn rooftops. Never have I hated someone so much so quickly.

Grayson was always so cool with me, it was actually like Ethan was the evil twin in this situation. I shook my head, not really wanting to think about Ethan more than I had to.

"Wait, Mr. Patrick. How did you know I was going to be tutoring him?" I asked, finally voicing my confusion.

"Teachers gossip too, y'know." He said with a subtle laugh. Placing the graded papers down on his desk and walked closer to me. He sat on the table next to me. Folding his hand on his thigh and looking at the door intently.

"Well, I guess I should have known that." I chuckled and shoved a piece of hair behind my ear. Looking up at the clock, realizing that I would have to leave to meet up with Ethan in the library shortly.

"You're not only a sweet girl, but a beautiful one as well." He moved closer to me and I gulped, I didn't really know what to say, so I jumped down with my feet hitting the ground.

"Well thanks, gotta go." I said in a panicked hurry, grabbing my bag and making my way out of his classroom and straight into the bathroom.

I walked into the handicapped stall and sighed out. Did that really just happen?

I really didn't want to think that the teacher I had a crush on was into me as well. Maybe to most girls that's flattering, but it just made me feel uneasy. I splashed water on my face to bring myself back down to reality.

I quickly dried my face off with some paper towels and walked out of the bathroom, making my way to the library. I walked up the stairs and walked to the glass building.

I pulled open the door and walked in, and signed in at one of the computers that were near the front. Eventually making my way to the tutoring labs in the back. They said Ethan and I were allowed to use one since it was for an AP class. I personally felt like that wasn't the case, but we're not going to talk about how the jocks basically have the say so in this school.

I sat down at the table and waiting a few minutes before Ethan walked through the door. I pulled out the book that we were now reading in class as he sat on the other side of the table.

"You have your copy of 1984?" I asked, also pulling out the notes that I had been taking in regards to this book. Ethan took out his copy of the book and set it down at the table.

"Yeah, and I read it all." He said really proud of himself. I mean I was glad the kid could at least read. However I knew that analyzing and trying to find the hidden meaning of the book within the pages of the book, I knew he was not going to be good at.

"Good, now show me the analysis you did on it."

"The what?" He asked, more seriously than I would have liked him to.

"Analysis? We had to have one for each one of the books we've read this semester. " I said with a bit of hesitance.

"Oh, those. Grayson always did them for me." I pinched the bridge of my nose before sighing.

"Okay, so tell me what you thought of the book."

"It's depressing. They couldn't do anything without the government getting on their ass." He said, I was pretty surprised that he at least got the main list of the book. I nodded and pointed over at the notebook.

"Okay, so write that... but maybe not in those exact words." I said with a bit of worry that he might actually write it exactly as he said it. Once I checked what he wrote, I asked him another question.

"Why couldn't do anything?" I got a little more in his face, if there was one thing I knew about Ethan is that he always hated to be challenged.

"Because Big Brother was always watching." Ethan pushed back, getting more in my face as well. 

"Why was he always watching?"

"Because he wanted to make sure that citizens were following the rules?" I could tell that Ethan was getting a bit annoyed with me always asking why to whatever he said. Each response came in with more attitude.

"Why did they need to follow the rules?"

"Because the government owns them."

"Why does the government own them?" Basically raising his voice with me, Ethan was completely fed up with me, his fist balled up tight as his face turned red.

"Because they are living in a dystopian socialist world."

"Why?"

"Because George Orwell wanted to warn us about socialism!" He said, basically yelling with his last breath, now standing up and looking at me with the meanest look I knew he could muster.

"There you go, there's your analysis." I said, putting the pencil I was holding down and crossed my arms, leaning back in the chair I was sitting on. Ethan's face had softened as he looked down at the paper and back up at me.

"What?" Being genuinely confused, Ethan sat back down and waited for me to explain.

"All those why questions brought you down to your analysis." I looked up at him with a soft smile, sliding the paper over to him.

"Now word it nicer." I handed him my pencil and he accepted it from me, smiling softly. Almost as if he was finally showing some sort of gratitude.

Maybe tutoring Ethan wouldn't be so bad.


	9. chapter 9

I sighed and rested my head in my hands as Ethan continued to blame me for him scoring low on the practice essay I had him write.

"I don't understand why you gave me a four! I Totally deserve a five, this is the best essay I have ever written." He stood up in annoyance and ran his hand through his hair.

"If this is the best essay you have ever written, I feel sorry for whoever your English teachers were." I groaned and rubbed my temples. Never have I met someone who was older than me, but still acted like a total child.

"Oh fuck you. This essay is amazing. This is why I didn't want your help, I knew that the only thing that you were going to do was belittle me. You're a terrible tutor." He sassed back, crossing his arms over his chest. I gave him a bit of a side eye before sighing out of my nose.

"I am not a terrible tutor, you are just a terrible student." I stood up and started to collect my things.

"What are you doing?" Ethan asked, utterly annoyed with me. I glared at him as I collected my things.

"It's obvious that you don't want my help, this was a waist of my time."

"So instead of trying harder, you're just going to give up on me?" He complained, he looked at me in disbelief. If he was expecting me to say I was sorry, I hope he wasn't holding his breath on that.

'"Ethan, I agreed to this to try to help you. Even after your friends called me stupid names that really aren't even insults."

"I can't control what my friends do." He said ignorantly. He was right, but it was obvious he ran that pack. I was sure whatever he said would go. I paused for a second before bringing my hand up to my face and pinching the bridge of my nose.

"Look, Ethan. If you really want my help to try to pass, I'll help. Please just stop wasting my time."

"Y'know Dyana, I am so sorry that I'm such a waste of your time. You think I like getting tutored by the weird girl?" He asked, almost as if I was somehow supposed to be apologetic for the fact that he had to be seen with the freak of the school.

"Wow... I really didn't think that you could be that stupid." I crossed my arms and blinked at him in disbelief. "Do you really think I want to be here with some egotistical dumbass who only cares about what other people think?" I sassed back, getting close to him. I was about ready to just take my lacrosse stick and hit him with it.

"Egotistical?" He asked, squinting slight at me.

"It means excessively conceited or absorbed in oneself." I was getting to the point where I really didn't care what was going to come out of my mouth, I knew it was going to be hurtful and that I would not take it back.

"Oh my god, do you not see what I mean. No normal person would know the definition of egotistical without looking it up!" He laced his hands in his hair as he walked away a few feet away from me.

"And a normal person wouldn't be on the urge of skipping class so much to the point of being close to failing when we just started the second semester." I walked away from him and groaned out in frustration.

"Why don't you go back from where you came from, freak?" He rolled his eyes and barely whispered it, but it was so quiet that I could still hear it.

"I would, but I can't" I mumbled back. I could see Ethan turn to me and sigh. I guess he could tell that maybe he shouldn't have said the last thing.

"You're not from Jersey, are you?" He asked, sitting down on the table top, and looking up at me.

"No, I was in Florida for the past 7 years." I kept my gaze, not really wanting to look up at him.

"Who did you leave down there?"

"My dad." I shift my eyes on the floor so that I wouldn't have to make eye contact with Ethan. I crossed my arms over my chest and kept quiet for a moment, leaning back against the same table Ethan was sitting on.

"Oh, fuck. I'm sorry... Were you guys close?" Ethan walked closer to me. I could sense that he was right behind me, and I knew it was true when I felt his arm go around my shoulder.

"He's like my best friend."

"Yeah, I get that. My father is sick, I don't want to have to live without him." I looked at him and cocked my head to the side. I guess we might have more in common than we thought.

"Sick with what?" I asked, wondering if it was the sickness that I was all too familiar with.

"Cancer." He suddenly became super interested in the pattern on the floor. Tracing the lines in the design with his eyes. 

"Mine too." I watched as his hazel eyes shot up and made eye contact with me. It was like in this moment I was looking at the real Ethan. Not the star player, not the class clown. Just Ethan.

And in that moment, I was just me. We were ourselves, living the same life In different bodies. There's nothing more bonding than the pain from a parent with a life threatening illness.

"It sucks being here without him, makes things so much harder." I rested my head against Ethan's shoulder, half expecting him to move away or shove me off.

"I could only imagine, I'm sorry you're not with him right now. I leave class through out the day just to go check up on him.... Sometimes I just skip school all together to take care of him" I groaned and closed my eyes. That's why he is always missing class.

"I'm a huge nerd because I promised my father I was going to get the education he never got, so I can take care of him the way he took care of me." I bit my lip, worried that I maybe said too much. I could feel Ethan's chin on my head after some silence.

"I can see you working for NASA one day." He mumbled. I knew he meant it to make me feel better, and I really did appreciate it.

Ethan and I paused, looking around at the table we completely messed up. "Hey. Why don't we start over. I promise to be a better student." He offered. I scoffed and shook my head.

"Yeah right."

"No, I mean it. I'll make it up to you." He smiled softly and started to pick up the books that landed on the ground.

"Fine, but the second you start acting like a child again. I'm out." I warned, helping Ethan pick up the books on the ground. I made eye contact with him while picking up, he smiled at me and went back to cleaning up.

Maybe. Just Maybe. Ethan Dolan wasn't a complete asshole.


	10. chapter 10

“Good job, Ethan.” I placed the mock exam down, already graded. I looked up to see a hopeful Ethan staring at me. I smiled and turned it around for him to look at. 

“Eighty-nine percent.” I said while leaning back In the chair with my arms crossed. He grabbed the mock text off of the table and smiled really wide. 

“That’s higher than another test I’ve ever done for a normal class!” He cheered out. I blinked a couple of times, shocked and taken back by his statement. 

“Uh, okay. Well I guess we’ll be working on those classes later.” I teased before shaking my head. 

“But seriously, good job. You got the reading comprehension down. Now we gotta work on your essay writing.” I pulled out one of his old essays from class and heard Ethan groan. 

“Dya, come on. I just nailed one part of the AP lit testing methods. Can we celebrate that before we move on to the next topic?” 

“Not really, there isn’t much time before the AP exam, and you need to get a six on the next essay for you to stay on the lacrosse team.” I rambled as Ethan rolled his eyes. 

  
“Oh please, my essays don’t need that much work. Let’s go out and have fun. We are young.” He sat up and started packing up his stuff. I looked at him confused. 

“What? Ethan, we can’t-“ I started to protest. 

“Dya, it’s almost like you you don’t know how to have fun or enjoy life.” He looked at me with an annoyed expression. 

“Well, I don’t really go out much.” I said with a bit hesitantly. Ethan stared at me in disbelief before helping me pack up my stuff. 

“Well how about I teach you how to have fun as repay for you teaching me how to do well in AP lit.” He said with a bright smile. I chuckled and shook my head. 

“Fine, but I need to be home by six.” I said walking out with him, pulling my messenger bag over my shoulder.It was maybe two seconds later before I looked up and noticed Ethan running. 

“Come on, Lacrosse girl. Keep up.” I huffed before pulling my bag off and holding it in my hand, running as fast as I could, trying to keep up with Ethan. We rand down the stairs and past the school entrance before stopping and laughing as we exited the building, breathing a bit heavier than normal. 

“Where are we going?” I asked pulling out my keys and looking over at Ethan. He shook his head and pulled out his keys. 

“First, I’m driving. Second, don’t worry about it.” We walked up to his car which surprisingly wasn’t as nice as I thought it would be, but still a hell of a lot nicer than mine. It looked to be like a black, 2015 Honda Civic. I walked up to the passenger side and got into the car with Ethan. He looked over at me with a soft smirk. 

“You like frozen yogurt?” He questioned, turning on the car. 

“Yeah, of course I do.” 

“Awesome, because I’m taking you to the best frozen yogurt shop there is.” He buckled himself in, as did I before he started driving out of the school parking lot. It had snowed a lit the night before, but it wasn’t anything too bad. I think that was the lightest night that had been in the past week. 

“Isn’t it too cold for frozen yogurt?” I was always told you shouldn’t eat cold things while it was cold outside to not catch a cold. 

“Too cold? We’ll eat it inside where it’s warm.” He chuckled, not knowing the reason I asked. I guess he was right. It would be warm inside. I looked out of tinted window as he drove down the very unfamiliar streets surrounding West Morris. I looked around at the trees and the warm, atmosphere surrounding the town. 

Ethan drove for about ten minutes or so before we pulled up to a frozen yogurt shop that was basically empty. I walked in as Ethan held the door open for me. I would be lying if I said I had been to a frozen yogurt shop before, so I really didn’t know what to do. 

“Dya? Have you never been to swirls before?” He chucked and went up to pick his flavors. I followed suit and mixed cookies and cream with birthday batter before sprinkling it all with M&M’s and cheesecake bits. 

Ethan paid for our cups, of course while I complained about him paying for mine as we walked to where the chair and tables were. 

“So this is your version of fun, hun?” I smirked while eating some of my yogurt. He sat down across from me and took his scarf off, placing it on the table next to him. 

“Anything is more fun than you do. You just read all day and do homework.” He sassed back. Looking down at his cup, inspecting its contents before he started to eat it.I squinted and looked at him with a salty expression. 

“What if that was fun to me?” I could barely keep a straight face, but I surely did try before breaking off into a fit of soft giggling. I covered my mouth with my hand, still trying to cover up the fact that I was a terrible liar. 

“I’m almost one hundred percent sure that what you do everyday, all day is not fun for anyone.” He glared at me as I tried to be a smart ass. I mean it wasn’t fun, but it wasn’t exactly like I had any friends to go out and have fun with. 

“Okay, you got me there.” I rolled my eyes and looked down at the table. I guess this one time Ethan was able to call me out. I looked back up when I head him chuckle a bit. I was half expecting for him to make fun of me for being a huge nerd like have had been doing before I started to tutor him. 

“I guess we have a lot to teach each other.” He said, I quickly looked up at him to make eye contact just in time for him to end it with a wink before looking back down.

I didn’t really understand why I felt my face heat up after he did that, I brought my clothed hand up to try to hide my face. 

The unsettling thing is that I was sure Ethan could teach me more things than I could ever possible teach him. There’s only so many subjects in school, but there are an endless amount of things to teach about life. 

What ever he could teach me, I was more than ready to learn.


End file.
